7 Miler While Camping in WI

>> Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Friday through Sunday I was camping with the in-laws near Sparta, WI (near Amish country). Saturday, we went canoeing down the Kickapoo River, which is hailed as “the windiest river in the world.” Doubt it, but whatever. ("Kickapoo" is Algonquin for "one who goes here, then there," and that's about right for describing the river...)

Saturday morning, before hitting the river, Pharmie’s uncle John and I went for a 7 miler. (John recently ran a sub-1:35 half marathon, and he’s hoping to get under 1:30 at the end of the summer.) I had forgot to pack a good pre-run breakfast, so I had a FruitaBu roll-up and a granola bar:



John told me that I COULD NOT RUN WITH A WATCH! He wanted me to push him to a hard run, but he wanted me to just “feel it out,” have a “fun run,” and not be concerned with my splits. We ended up mapping out a 7 mile route, John let me wear my watch AND take mile splits, but I couldn’t look at it while I was running - I could just check my splits after the run.

We went out at a pretty good pace. For the first 3.5 miles, we were pretty chatty. I was probably going at about 85-90% of “all out” pace. After we turned around and started heading back to the campsite, John started talking less - he was pushing himself to a good run. Just before mile 5, he said he was going to ease up at mile 5 and cool down for the last 2 miles. I had worked him hard, and he was done. He told me to finish out the run, and he’d be not far behind. I finished 7 hilly, hot, Wisconsin miles in 51:01 (7:17 pace with a negative split), and John was just a few minutes back.

Here we are at the campsite after our run. John didn’t pee himself; that’s all sweat:



Our work was done; it was time to spend the afternoon canoeing down the Kickapoo River! We canoed for about an hour before stopping at the first of many sandbars. Across the river from the sandbar was a rocky ledge with a lot of plants growing on it. A few of us ventured up it so we could jump off. Here I go:



I jumped hand-in-hand with a few of Pharmie’s cousins too:





Fun times on the Kickapoo! Here’s our entire gang after getting off the river (I’m in the yellow visor in the back):



Back at the camp grounds, we had a good time in the pool:


That’s harder than it looks!

It was a fun way to spend the weekend! Now, I’m off to a “CVA Triathlon Club” workout, and then maybe another workout before having to teach.

21 comments:

Missy 6:48 AM, June 23, 2009  

Looks like a total blast! Are you SURE he didn't pee his pants?!?

Missy 6:48 AM, June 23, 2009  
This comment has been removed by the author.
IronGambit 6:58 AM, June 23, 2009  

wow, that is a HUGE totem pole!

Jen Feeny 7:08 AM, June 23, 2009  

I'm glad John didn't pee himself! LOL! Looks like you had a great time! That cliff diving looks like soooooooo much fun!

duchossois 7:40 AM, June 23, 2009  

Man does that look like a fun trip!

Carolina John 8:16 AM, June 23, 2009  

wow, that looks like a great camping trip! i've been itching to get out there too, but i can wait until it cools off down here.

Stefanie 8:36 AM, June 23, 2009  

LOL IronGambit took the words right out of my mouth. A Human Totem Pole

bigmike600 9:21 AM, June 23, 2009  

Did the same canoe trip a couple years ago. It was super fun. I recognized that spot where you jumped into the water. It's a great time for sure. See you this weekend at WIBA.

X-Country2 9:32 AM, June 23, 2009  

I don't camp, but that almost makes it look fun. :o)

Anonymous,  9:47 AM, June 23, 2009  

4 people tall...impressive indeed :)

This entry is prompting me to get on my Dad about planning our family outting. Devil's Lake in WI is one of our favs!

-Kerri at Enzymatic Therapy

Mark Baker 9:55 AM, June 23, 2009  

Sounds like a fun trip.

I've got to go camping more myself.

B.o.B. 10:32 AM, June 23, 2009  

Very fun! We did a tubing trip with the running group and needless to say it wasn't so family friendly (pitching tent jokes the entire weekend).

Julia 10:46 AM, June 23, 2009  

Oh wow look at that human tower! Sounds like you are having a blast! How did you like running without a watch? I feel like I would run too hard to make sure I wasn't going slow or something. I guess it's kind of like running without music?

teacherwoman 11:57 AM, June 23, 2009  

Nice job on the 7-miler. Love all the great pics! You are really good about catching the moment! I always bring my camera but forget to use it!

Danica 12:45 PM, June 23, 2009  

looks pretty fun!

also I put my contest up, you wanna win your gift certificate back? ha ha enter away!

The Lazy Triathlete 5:00 PM, June 23, 2009  

Sparta, WI? Never thought of that as Amish Country. But then I have only been there when I was at Fort McCoy.

Spandex King 5:21 PM, June 23, 2009  

You should have let me know! Ah! You were right up the road! The Kickapo in the fall is awesome!

CoachLiz 7:59 AM, June 24, 2009  

Jumping off that ledge would have scared the poop out of me.

So, was the water cold? Even though it has been in the high 90's and the 100's here in Texas the water in the Guadalupe River is cold. It looks great to go tubing in and you end up roasting your arms and legs and freezing you butt. LOL!

Anniversary Moments 12:51 PM, June 24, 2009  

what fun! running with your watch but not be able to actually look at it -- uncle john is tough -- don't know that i could do that without sneaking a peek - the garmin would be taunting me.

The Boring Runner 5:05 PM, July 01, 2009  

Whoa, I've tried a 3x totem pole, but NEVER have gotten 4x!!!!

(I'm always the middle too - stupid running making me a stupid lightweight...)

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